Social Listening: Your Best Teacher

Jen Cole | April 7, 2023

Does your business have a social listening system in place?

When it comes to resonating with future and current customers, there’s one thing we know for sure:

No one wants to be advertised to!

As marketers, it’s our job to pump out relevant content at a consistent pace to keep the audience constantly coming back. What happens when your ideas become stale and you’re no longer able to creatively produce high-quality content that they truly enjoy?

Engage your educating state of mind.

As Marcus Sheridan puts it, “The ultimate content strategy is listening.”

Listen to your customers! What are their questions? What are their tribulations? How does your brand provide a solution?

Listen to them, TRULY LISTEN.

When we truly listen to our audience, engage with them, find out what their struggles are and then turn around and provide them with a possible solution (even if the answer isn’t our product or service), we build trust. If you don’t currently have a social listening strategy, it’s time to implement one.

Why is building trust so important to your business? Well, first off, think about the potential value of a life-time customer. Is a life-time customer someone who visits your clothing boutique regularly because they know that the woman working in your shop takes the time to match clothes to their body-type and she even strives to stay within your budget? If you answered “yes,” then the life-time value of your customer could potentially be thousands of dollars. THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS FOR ONE CLOTHING CUSTOMER, simply by taking the extra time to listen to them and provide excellent service.

What if you’re a local restaurant? Do you perceive your guests as potential life-time customers? If you’re a local restaurant, then the likelihood of attracting lifetime customers is very high if your staff is attentive and your food is truly phenomenal. When people dine out, they expect an experience. Want to know what they’re experiencing with your restaurant? Listen on social media! What are people posting about your restaurant? Are they posting about the amazing drink specials? Maybe they’re posting about the fluffy, buttery dinner rolls that are complimentary with every dining experience?

Find out what people appreciate about your business and make it a piece of your identity. Sometimes the vibe we meant to give off in the beginning stages of our business efforts are completely different from what they evolve to be, but the best favor that you can do for your business and your customers is to listen to what’s being said, what’s being enjoyed, what’s not-so-popular. After all, the customers are the ones keeping the lights on and providing those priceless Instagram posts and Google reviews!

Listen to them. Value their thoughts. Nothing pleases a customer more than when their favorite brands/businesses show that they personally care about their feedback and experience.

Don’t like negative feedback? Change your own perspective. Negative feedback carries heavy potential for learning. Sure, it might not be comfortable to hear, but when it’s delivered constructively, it can serve as a lesson. Accept it openly and be thankful for it. If you’re going to be in business, you need to be able to think outside the box and allow your business to grow and evolve based on customer experiences with your product/service.

When it comes to content, develop content that answers their questions!

Might your customers be curious about holiday store hours? Make sure you post about it early in the long weekend!

Does your restaurant serve locally-sourced products? Regularly highlight these facts in a blog post or video, then share on Facebook and Twitter!

Is your boutique running a holiday special? Make sure you post about it on Instagram early in the day so that people are aware!

Are you a realtor who is frequently asked about HOA’s? Make a Facebook Live video about it and address questions from the audience as they come in!

Your audience exists and it consists of human beings. Human beings are always thirsty for more knowledge. Satisfy that for them and you might just land yourself some lifetime customers.